MX vs. ATV Reflex Hands-on

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The DS gets its own rendition of the upcoming Rainbow Studios racer, and we take it out for a little spin.

By Craig Harris

THQ stopped by the IGN offices late last week to give us a peek at the console version of MX vs. ATV Reflex, the latest in the dirt racing series from Rainbow Studios. While the console demo was going on, I had my own little aside with the Nintendo DS edition, set to release day and date with the bigger boys.

MX vs. ATV Reflex is a follow-up to MX vs. ATV Untamed released in late 2007. Reflex is being developed by the same team responsible, Tantalus out of Australia. The updated game doesn't look drastically different from Untamed as it's clear the development team's using the original title as a foundation. There have been improvements to the engine to allow for a bit more graphical detail, but for the most part on a visual scale MX vs. ATV Reflex is going to look a bit more than a little familiar if you played MX vs. ATV on the DS a year and a half ago.

Being that this is a DS game, it means you shouldn't expect the same visual enhancements that the console game has – you know the terrain deformation that Rainbow Studios is touting for this year's engine? Yeah, not in the DS edition.

Where most of the effort has gone is in adjusting the gameplay mechanics. Racing's a bit tighter and a little more arcade-like. It's all handled on the D-pad and buttons, with the shoulder toggles used to tighten up a turn in a powerslide-like "reflex" maneuver. You can preload jumps to get more air by pressing down then up just before the jump begins to really cruise through the air. If you land a bit off-balance, you have a split second to stay on the bike with the new "wreck avoidance" mechanic where you push the D-pad in the indicated direction. Of course, while you're in the air you can pull off a series of tricks. The Y button is your modifier, and you can perform specific maneuvers by holding Y down and tapping the D-pad or shoulder buttons.

Along with the MX and ATV vehicles, the DS version has unlockable Monster Trucks to drive, complete with tracks that have vehicles to crush into oblivion. Each of the different class of drivable vehicles have their own handling so that jumping on a bike feels drastically different than driving around in an oversized pick-up.

The final game will also feature a four player local wireless competitive option where you'll only need one copy of the game for all four players. And while the DS version doesn't have direct online functionality, the developers implement a password system where you can enter in your best times into the game's website to see where you stack up against the rest of the world.

The game's scheduled to ship during the holiday season of this year. Check out the first screens of the game below.